The FCA intends to seek an urgent court declaration to establish the basis on which insurers are making decisions to accept claims under business interruption insurance policies (BI).
The FCA will bring to court what it believes are the key relevant cases which provide the greatest clarity on specific policy clauses to get an judicial view on these disputed BI claims.
The cases placed before the court (as agreed between the FCA and the insurers concerned) will be carefully chosen as a representative sample of the most frequently used policy wordings that are giving rise to uncertainty.
Meanwhile, the FCA is writing to a small number of insurers asking them to clarify whether they are declining or intend to decline BI claims. The FCA expects responses from them by no later than 15 May 2020 and will then consider which insurers to ask to join the court process based on the responses.
Individuals can still access the Financial Ombudsman or the courts if they qualify and wish to do so.
Link to related article: https://www.fca.org.uk/news/statements/insuring-smes-business-interruption
